What's Next: Microblogging to Nanoblogging

Being in PR we are always on the look out for the next big thing to share with our clients...

New start-up, Flutter, looks to one-up Twitter by reducing their character count from 140 to 26. They are the leading (and only) company in the world of "nanoblogging."

Marian, March 10, Made it Happen

Porter Novelli's Chief Marketing Officer, Marian Salzman was kind enough to drop the latest trends on a variety of Seattle business folks and PNers alike, as Chiefs are apt to do. She discussed the social and generational trends that are shaping American society in 2009, from technology, to privacy, to generational power shifts.

Here is a sample of what she had to say when she stopped by our PN Seattle podcast studio earlier today.

Marian, March 10, Make it Happen

PN Seattle doesn't have a "Chief" anything. No Chief Executive Officer, no Chief Operations Officer, no Chiefs, no Chefs, nothing.

But on the week of March 10, PN Seattle will be lucky enough to have one Chief. Porter Novelli's renowned trendspotter and Chief Marketing Officer Marian Salzman will be in Seattle to share her insights for 2009 with a select number of Seattle movers and shakers at Hotel Andra. It will be a unique opportunity for our office and for local businesses as well. The fine folks here at Fizzle Pop are going to be on hand at this event so expect to see podcasts, photos and blog posts for you to distribute to friends and associates. Also, make sure to read up on Marian’s latest book, Next Now and her Intelligent Dialogue series so you can talk-the-talk with our CMO.

Gamers Gettin' Drunk

We are a PR agency. We are constantly learning. We also dig gaming.

Wednesday evening, PN gamers Lincoln, Emil and Tera attended a Q&A panel about Washington’s video game industry that was hosted by the Washington Technology Industry Association (WTIA). The panel featured the who’s who of gaming entrepreneurs including THE Alex St. John (WildTangent), Harold Zeitz (Real Networks), Paul Thelen (Big Fish Games) and Pete Parsons (Meteor Solutions).

Because we were a bit jealous of those panelists, here’s a quick Q&A with Emil and Tera about their impressions from the event. Take it away Lincoln…

Lincoln: One of you games often – you know, like plays D&D on weekends and stuff – and one of you is more of a casual gamer, how did your experiences differ?
Tera: I don’t speak fluent gaming yet–you can call me a N00B (?!?!) if you want. I’m learning about many of these companies for the first time. Hearing the panelists discuss the business and marketing strategies they created to survive in today’s economy was fascinating. What was most impressive is their confidence. Granted, you don’t run a multi-million dollar business by hiding under the covers, but these men (seriously, where were the chicas?) seemed utterly fearless.
Emil: Actually Tera, its spelled n00b. For me it was more of an affirmation of things to come. The lack of interest or support for the console market was pretty interesting to me since that’s what I’m immersed in all the time for work and as a consumer. But I can’t tell if that’s because WTIA couldn’t book anyone big from the console industry, or if the PC gaming market really is as strong as the panel made it seem. I think most of my fun was derived from quietly refuting Alex St. John’s numerous exclamations of doom… and contemplating the consequences of ripping open my shirt and reveal my PlayStation Home t-shirt underneath.

Tera: Shoot.

Lincoln: Biggest takeaway?
Tera: Culture was a big deal to these companies. Many feel the imposing threat from larger companies such as Amazon and Microsoft was weak because they could never touch the level of service and quality offered by the smaller “boutique” gaming shops. Also… next time I won’t take the mini-burger with the toothpick sign that tells everyone what they are eating. Oops.
Emil: That losing your debit card is kind of annoying.

Lincoln: Coolest person you met?
Emil: Skylar, a classic startup story; Essentially started a computer game modding company in his garage, has produced some solid content but is looking towards loftier goals. Has great ideas of where the PC market can go, but no means to get there yet.
Tera: Alex St. John’s little brother - Rex. He works for a consumer software and web services company based in Sammamish. I bet he follows his brother’s entrepreneurial footsteps.

Lincoln: What was the audience like?
Tera: Uh… hmm. Emil – you want this one?
Emil: Well, not surprisingly, the female-to-male ratio was pretty low. There certainly wasn’t any focus to who was invited so we met a wide variety of people; Accountants for tech companies, staffing agencies, small-time developers and more. Not many other Mar/Com peeps.

Lincoln: Was it worth the investment?
Tera: I think so. Many of our clients are in the gaming arena and currently face similar challenges to the issues the panelists discussed. It’s important for us to understand our client’s business climate so we can communicate on the same level.
Emil: Definitely. Those sliders were awesome. And I know that both Lincoln and I have already used some of the messages and insights from the panel to BS our way through more than a few conversations with others. It was incredibly validating to hear the importance of downloadable content and virtual worlds reiterated by many of the panelists. Also, many of them felt that Seattle is an important hub in the online gaming market, if not the most important, so that’s great considering our work, clients and expertise.

Lincoln: So, tell us, did you meet your goals?
Tera: Yes 2 and 10
Emil: Wait, Goals?!?!
Lincoln: Shooot… who didn’t I meet? I mean, between eating all the broccoli and grapes, I was a mingling machine.

Change May Come To YouTube's Terms of Use

Earlier this week I posted about how YouTube has set up pages for both the House and Senate for them to use as a place to talk about what they are working on and to post clips of them on media sites like CNN. It sounds like YouTube and the General Services Administration are in talks now about YouTube's terms of use. In order for federal agencies to be able to post videos, they need YouTube to tweak its terms-of-use language.

We all know about all the hoops we've had to jump through in the past in order to post coverage of our clients' on YouTube - it's pretty much impossible so getting these rules changed would be a big step for us!

Using Twitter to Become Part of the Conversation

The following tips come from a Cision executive tip sheet on how Twitter can become a key element of your communications effort.

Not a day goes by without hearing the terms social media, blogging, micro-blogging, Twitter, FriendFeed, etc. The question is, how do these services apply to public relations and can they be used to help you improve program execution and results? More important, how can they be used properly without getting burned? Millions have flocked to Twitter, a messaging application that has become the rage among the technorati, attracting more than 12 million registered users so far. Top technology industry analysts, PR and marketing pros, editors and writers, the big names influencing social media, corporate executives, community managers and others can be found at all hours of the day tweeting their thoughts and ideas or providing links to sites delivering critical information.

Many public relations and communications professionals see the growing community of editors, analysts and influencers congregating on Twitter as a “goldmine” of potentially useful contacts. But that is where the potential problem begins. If it is a goldmine, it is one that has to be mined appropriately and carefully. Don’t view Twitter as simply another channel through which you can pitch editors and other influencers. Instead, view it as a means to establish relationships with those who in the long run could help you and your clients.

Here are six tips on how to get involved with Twitter and other “micro-blogging” services, and what practices to avoid if you want to create meaningful relationships with key influencers who may be receptive to hearing and writing about your clients’ products and services:

1. First, get in the game.

The first thing you need to do is to sign up to participate. This is an extremely simple process. Given Twitter’s popularity, it should be your first stop. However, also consider signing up with FriendFeed, Identi.ca and several others. A simple Google search on the term “Twitter” will turn up thousands of articles that likely cover many of the competing services worth investigating.

2. Choose your friends.

Services like Twitter are of little value unless you find the right people to follow. Once you find people with interests similar to yours to follow, and once you start posting your own thoughts for other to see, you will start attracting your own followers. When you find a few valuable Twitter friends, you can then review their lists and find others to follow. You will quickly have a solid list.

3. Listen closely.

Sit back for awhile and follow the conversations. See what is being said about specific industries and even specific companies or products. You may even read things about your company or a client. Learn what interests the people you are following. In addition, there are tools that allow you to plug in a search term and see what is being said about a company or a topic. These search tools can also help you find the right people to follow. [My favorite site to search for what other's are saying about our clients is www.summize.com - If they are talking about our client, I usually end up following them.]

4. Time to start talking.

Once you feel comfortable, you can then enter the conversation. Respond to topics and post your own topics, thoughts or ideas. If you see an interesting article, post a link to it. Closely follow which of your posts seem to generate the most interest and post more of the same. At some point, one of your followers or someone you are following may send a direct message to you asking you a specific question or looking for further details on something you posted. Also, interesting and provocative posts usually attract more Twitter followers. [I usually try to post links to good blog posts or articles about our client as well. If they offer a fresh perspective or a good tip, usually others want to hear about it.]

5. To pitch or not to pitch.

Having established Twitter relationships with key influencers, the next question is, do you actually pitch them on Twitter? Most cases, the answer is no. Unless, of course, you have established relationships through direct messaging, and you feel the target of your pitch will be comfortable receiving it. Many influencers who are on Twitter would bristle at direct pitches, so it is best to be careful. However, the information you gain on Twitter should help you with your pitches moving forward, be they via email, telephone call or other method.

You can, however, post client news, although it is strongly recommended that you do not spam. Many agencies and PR/social media professionals are avid Twitter users and when they post news from a client they clearly label it as such. And, they usually keep this type of post to a minimum. In addition, numerous companies have Twitter accounts that they use for various reasons, including developing stronger relationships with customers or to distribute news.

6. Improve your writing skills.

Twitter’s 140-character limit per post might seem imposing at first. However, it eventually becomes a great way to improve your ability to tell a story in a few words. Being able to make a clear point or communicate a message in 140 characters or less on Twitter should help you to become a more succinct and better writer when it comes to developing pitches and other communiqués. There are several Twitter users who have taken to writing 140-character news releases and they have been able to effectively communicate a story.

To sum up, technology and the internet have put a new level of communications tools in the hands of PR professionals. Used properly, these tools can give you and your clients a major advantage. Used poorly, they could end up hurting you and your clients. Make sure you have a game plan in place before running on to the Twitter field.

Did You See Bud Light's Emmy Winning 'Swear Job' Commercial?

Anheuser-Busch won it's first-ever Emmy for a commercial that never actually aired on TV! According to the PR team the 'Swear Jar' commercial has been viewed 12 million times online. I think it's safe to say that this video had some viral legs that took it very far!

Drudge Report Named #1 News Site

When it comes to website optimization is a high bounce rate a good thing? I've always viewed it as a bad thing because you are loosing customers. They took one look around, didn't see anything they liked, and left. Maybe I've been thinking about this the wrong way.

If you look at the Drudge Report, who is now the #1 news site and has 500 million monthly page views, you start to see things differently. Their entire site is made up of links, which means their entire model is based off of sending people away from their site. The length of time their users spend on the site is the amount of time it took them to find what they were looking for. The shorter the amount of time the better and they always come back wanting more. So they've got a high bounce rate and a high percentage of returning customers.

The bottom line is to give your customers what they want. Don't try to bait them into clicking from page to page to keep them on your site. The faster they find what they are looking for the happier they'll be, even if that means sending them away to a third-party site.